Mass production forming or fabricating of nanostructures or microstructures, such as any manufactured structure having a scale between molecular and microscopic, presents challenges to existing forming techniques.
For example, an item or a precursor to an item manufactured in a forming process, such as by injection moulding, may have been formed in a stressed material state. The forming process itself imparts stresses such as deformation stress, shear stress, flow stress and temperature stress to the material or item thus formed. Generally, in existing forming techniques the greater the speed of production the more stress tends to be imparted in to the formed product. Traditionally, these stresses are increased greatly when attempting to mass produce products.
Further disadvantages of forming products have included the subsequent deformation of an imprinted or formed item or product surface by the heat remaining in the material following a forming step. The heat transfer rates may impact on the length of time taken for the item or product to cool and the imprinted shape to hold its pattern.
It would be beneficial if an item or a precursor material for forming an item can be manufactured or fabricated in a manner that minimises or reduces the problems associated with formation stresses or stresses that may become locked up in the item due to the variations in temperature across an item during a forming process. Reducing or minimising overall shrinkages of forming an item to a near net shape also provides for manufacturing efficiencies.
It would therefore be significantly advantageous to be able to mass produce products. Mass production would assist in reducing the effective cost per unit or cost per unit area produced. Mass production capability allows for such efficiencies which previously have not been possible. The ability to mass produce large volumes or large areas enables commercialisation of products that have previously not been possible by traditional forming methods.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved method for forming or to provide items formed by the method or via precursors formed by the improved method to provide formed features at a nano-scale or a near nano-scale addressing the foregoing problems or which will at least provide the industry or public with a useful choice.
In this specification where reference has been made to patent specifications, other external documents, or other sources of information, this is generally for the purpose of providing a context for discussing the features of the invention. Unless specifically stated otherwise, reference to such external documents is not to be construed as an admission that such documents, or such sources of information, in any jurisdiction, are prior art, or form part of the common general knowledge in the art.
Further aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the ensuing description which is given by way of example only.